Heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) head with main pole having recess for plasmonic material

Abstract

A heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) head has a slider with a gas-bearing-surface (GBS). The slider supports a near-field transducer (NFT) and a main magnetic pole that has a step or recess in the NFT-facing surface near the GBS that contains plasmonic material. A thermal shunt is located between the NFT and the main pole to allow heat to be transferred away from the optical spot generated by the NFT. The NFT-facing surface of the main pole that is recessed from the step away from the GBS is in contact with the thermal shunt, and the thermal shunt is in contact with the plasmonic material in the step in the back region recessed from the GBS, so there is no increase in the spacing between the NFT and a large portion of the main pole.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A magnetic recording head, comprising:
 a main pole having a first surface disposed at a gas-bearing surface (GBS), a second surface perpendicular to the first surface, and a third surface disposed between the first surface and the second surface, the third surface being parallel to the first surface; 
 a near-field transducer (NFT) disposed adjacent to the second surface of the main pole, the NFT having an output tip disposed at the GBS; 
 a thermal shunt disposed between the NFT and the second surface of the main pole, the thermal shunt being recessed from the GBS; and 
 a plasmonic material disposed between the first surface of the main pole and the output tip of the NFT, the plasmonic material extending from the GBS to the third surface of the main pole. 
 
     
     
       2. The magnetic recording head of  claim 1 , further comprising a waveguide disposed adjacent to the NFT, the waveguide extending to the GBS. 
     
     
       3. The magnetic recording head of  claim 1 , wherein the thermal shunt is disposed in contact with the second surface of the main pole. 
     
     
       4. The magnetic recording head of  claim 1 , further comprising a diffusion barrier disposed between the thermal shunt and the second surface of the main pole. 
     
     
       5. The magnetic recording head of  claim 4 , wherein the thermal shunt is spaced from the plasmonic material by the diffusion barrier. 
     
     
       6. The magnetic recording head of  claim 1 , wherein the output tip of the NFT is aligned with the plasmonic material at the GBS in an along-the-track direction. 
     
     
       7. A magnetic recording device comprising the magnetic recording head of  claim 1 . 
     
     
       8. A magnetic recording head, comprising:
 a main pole having a first surface disposed at a gas-bearing surface (GBS), a second surface perpendicular to the first surface, and a third surface disposed between the first surface and the second surface, the third surface being parallel to the first surface; 
 a near-field transducer (NFT) disposed adjacent to the second surface of the main pole, the NFT having an output tip disposed at the GBS; and 
 a thermal shunt disposed between the NFT and the second surface of the main pole, wherein a first portion of the thermal shunt is disposed within a plasmonic recess, the plasmonic recess being disposed at the GBS between the first surface of the main pole and the output tip of the NFT, wherein the plasmonic recess extends from the GBS to the third surface of the main pole. 
 
     
     
       9. The magnetic recording head of  claim 8 , wherein the thermal shunt comprises one or more of Au, Rh, Ir, Cu, Ag, Al, Ru, Cr, Pt, Ti, Fe, Co, Ni, Pd, Be, Mo, W, AIN alloy and TiN alloy. 
     
     
       10. The magnetic recording head of  claim 8 , further comprising heat sink material disposed adjacent to the main pole and to the thermal shunt in a cross-track direction. 
     
     
       11. The magnetic recording head of  claim 10 , further comprising a diffusion barrier disposed between the thermal shunt and the heat sink material. 
     
     
       12. The magnetic recording head of  claim 8 , wherein the thermal shunt comprises a multilayer of two or more dissimilar materials. 
     
     
       13. The magnetic recording head of  claim 8 , wherein the first portion of the thermal shunt disposed in the plasmonic recess has a thickness less than a second portion of the thermal shunt recessed from the GBS. 
     
     
       14. A magnetic recording device comprising the magnetic recording head of  claim 8 . 
     
     
       15. A magnetic recording head, comprising:
 a main pole having a first portion disposed at a gas-bearing surface (GBS) and a second portion recessed from the GBS, the first portion having a first width in an along-the-track direction and the second portion having a second width in the along-the-track direction greater than the first width; 
 a near-field transducer (NFT) disposed adjacent to the main pole, the NFT having an output tip disposed at the GBS; 
 a thermal shunt disposed between the NFT and the main pole; and 
 a plasmonic material disposed at the GBS between the main pole and the output tip of the NFT, the plasmonic material extending from the GBS to the second portion of the main pole. 
 
     
     
       16. The magnetic recording head of  claim 15 , wherein the thermal shunt and the plasmonic material comprise different materials. 
     
     
       17. The magnetic recording head of  claim 15 , wherein the thermal shunt and the plasmonic material comprise a same material. 
     
     
       18. The magnetic recording head of  claim 15 , wherein the plasmonic material is spaced from the NFT at the GBS. 
     
     
       19. The magnetic recording head of  claim 15 , wherein a thickness of the thermal shunt is greater than a thickness of the plasmonic material. 
     
     
       20. A magnetic recording device comprising the magnetic recording head of  claim 15 .